Related papers: Variable rotational line broadening in the Be star…
Context. The mechanism of disk formation around fast-rotating Be stars is not well understood. In particular, it is not clear which mechanisms operate, in addition to fast rotation, to produce the observed variable ejection of matter. The…
Classical Be stars are an enigmatic subclass of rapidly rotating hot stars characterized by dense equatorial disks of gas that have been inferred to orbit with Keplerian velocities. Although these disks seem to be ejected from the star and…
The spin-down of Be stars due to angular momentum transport from star to disc has been considered. This has been prompted by empirical studies of observed optical and IR line profile studies indicating that the disc is rotating in a…
Be stars are rapid rotators surrounded by a gaseous disk envelope whose origin is still under debate. This envelope is responsible for observed emission lines and large infrared excess. To progress in the understanding of the physical…
Classical Be stars, the "e" standing for the presence of spectroscopic line emission, are main sequence stars of spectral type B that are able to form a gaseous disk in Keplerian motion from star-ejected matter. The main driver of this…
Context: [abbreviated] Aims: Kepler data of three known Be stars are re-visited to establish their pulsational nature and assess the properties of additional, non-pulsational variations. The three program stars turned out to be one inactive…
In the past decade, a consensus has emerged regarding the nature of classical Be stars: They are very rapidly rotating main sequence B stars, which, through a still unknown, but increasingly constrained process, form an outwardly diffusing…
Circumstellar discs of Be stars are thought to be formed from material ejected from a fast-spinning central star. This material possesses large amounts of angular momentum and settles in a quasi-Keplerian orbit around the star. This simple…
Be stars are rapidly rotating, with angular frequency around $0.7-0.8$ of their Keplerian break up frequency, as a result of significant accretion during the earlier stellar evolution of a companion star. Material from the equator of the Be…
The Be star $\pi$ Aquarii shows peculiar $\gamma$ Cas-type X-ray emission, likely caused by its outer disk interacting with a low-mass companion, probably a white dwarf. We study the long-term variability of its optical spectra to derive…
Spectroscopic observations of Achernar over the past decades, have shown the photospheric line width, as measured by the rotational parameter $v \sin i$, to vary in correlation with the emission activity. Here we present new observations,…
Achernar, the closest and brightest classical Be star, presents rotational flattening, gravity darkening, occasional emission lines due to a gaseous disk, and an extended polar wind. It is also a member of a close binary system with an…
Context. Classical Be stars are hot non-supergiant stars surrounded by a gaseous circumstellar disk that is responsible for the observed infrared-excess and emission lines. The phenomena involved in the disk formation still remain highly…
Aims. We aim to study the geometry and kinematics of the disk around the Be star $\alpha$ Arae as a function of wavelength, especially across the Br$\gamma$ emission line. The main purpose of this paper is to answer the question about the…
Context: Be stars are massive dwarf or subgiant stars that present temporary emission lines in their spectrum, and particularly in the Halpha line. The mechanism triggering these Be episodes is currently unknown, but binarity could play an…
Despite extensive study, the mechanisms by which Be star disks acquire high densities and angular momentum while displaying variability on many time scales are still far from clear. In this paper, we discuss how magnetic torquing may help…
We examine the effects of optically thick line forces on orbiting circumstellar disks, such as occur around Be stars. For radially streaming radiation, line forces are only effective if there is a strong radial velocity gradient, as occurs,…
Be stars, which are characterised by intermittent emission in their hydrogen lines, are known to be fast rotators. This fast rotation is a requirement for the formation of a Keplerian disk, which in turn gives rise to the emission. However,…
Be stars possess gaseous circumstellar disks that modify in many ways the spectrum of the central B star. Furthermore, they exhibit variability at several timescales and for a large number of observables. Putting the pieces together of this…
Hot, massive stars (spectral types O and B) have extreme luminosities ($10^4 -10^6 L_\odot$) that drive strong stellar winds through UV line-scattering. Some massive stars also have disks, formed by either decretion from the star (as in the…